


Worth the Weight in Dreams

by slotumn



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Character Interpretation, Angst, Character Study, Childhood Trauma, Dreams, F/M, Ficlet, Gen, Guilt, Self-Esteem Issues, Survivor Guilt, claude has issues, no beta we die like Glenn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-26
Updated: 2020-05-26
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:00:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24395404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/slotumn/pseuds/slotumn
Summary: "Sorry that it's someone like me who won the war, I guess. Even the crown was nothing more than a tool for me, so I suppose I didn't feel the weight of its duties or obligations or whatever, like you two once did. As soon as my goals changed, as soon as I didn't need it, I threw it away. That's the kind of person I am. Sorry."
Relationships: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd & Edelgard von Hresvelg & Claude von Riegan, Lysithea von Ordelia/Claude von Riegan
Kudos: 12





	Worth the Weight in Dreams

"To be honest," he began, "there was a time when I considered nothing to be too great of a cost for people's acceptance. Yeah, even forfeiting all the ambitions and schemes you two always associated with me."

Edelgard and Dimitri, dressed in their school uniforms, didn't reply.

"If giving up my position as crown prince was all it would taken for them to stop hating me, I would have done it in a heartbeat, you see."

They were still holding their weapons, he noted.

"Sorry that it's someone like me who won the war, I guess. Even the crown was nothing more than a tool for me, so I suppose I didn't feel the weight of its duties or obligations or whatever, like you two once did. As soon as my goals changed, as soon as I didn't need it, I threw it away. That's the kind of person I am. Sorry."

His stupid voice began cracking.

"And it turns out that all it takes for my goals to change is the threat of being lonely again. They were right, when they called me a weakling and a coward. I'm still no different from that little boy who would do anything to be loved. _Anything_. Including giving up on my lifelong dreams."

Something hot ran down his face.

Funny, he thought, never knew you could cry in guilt-fueled fever nightmares.

Was he crying in real life, too?

"Fuck it. I want to be-- I want _us_ to be-- happy and loved above everything else. It's selfish and unpragmatic and missing the bigger picture and everything I usually try to avoid, but hey, they do say that love makes you kind of crazy."

All three of them were standing still, but the distance between then kept growing.

"What was it like for you two?"

Their weapons were now glowing, complimented by backdrops of red and blue capes that dragged across the ground.

"How much would you have given up to be happy?"

They didn't answer.

**Author's Note:**

> [LysiClaude week twitter](https://twitter.com/LysiClaudeWeek?s=20)  
>   
> [My twitter](https://twitter.com/slotumn?s=09)  
>   
> So, this turned out a lot more depressing than I originally intended.


End file.
